[Cankor] Report #223

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Dear subscriber,

Welcome to issue #223 of the CanKor Report.

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The CanKor team

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CANADA-KOREA ELECTRONIC INFORMATION SERVICE

CanKor # 223

Friday, 14 October 2005
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The DPRK Workers' Party celebrates the 60th anniversary of its founding 
with a military parade attended by leader Kim Jong Il. The country's No. 
2 leader, Kim Yong Nam addresses the crowd, underlining the importance 
of pursuing the Party's "military first" policies. In a televised 
address to the masses, Vice Marshal Kim Il Chol promises that the DPRK 
military will "mercilessly crush the agressors" if the USA or Japan 
start a war. No mention is made during the festivities of the statement 
issued following recent Six-Party Talks.

While attending the festivities, Russian presidential envoy Konstantin 
Pulikovsky, meets Kim Jong-il and is given "clear confirmation" of 
Pyongyang's renunciation of nuclear weapons and continued support of the 
Six-Party process.

For the first time since inter-Korean economic cooperation talks began, 
the DPRK agrees to discuss in advance the agenda for the 11th 
director-level talks, due to begin 25 October. One day after the 
conclusion of the last round of Six-Party Talks, ROK President Roh 
Moo-hyun ordered the creation of a comprehensive plan for the DPRK's 
economic recovery. Inter-Korean trade is expected to reach a record high 
of one billion dollars this year if the current momentum is maintained.

Economic cooperation and trade top the agenda of Chinese Vice Premier Wu 
Yi's visit to the DPRK. PRC Foreign Ministry spokesman described the 
visit as "successful and satisfactory" on furthering bilateral relations.

A visiting expectant mother has become the first South Korean citizen to 
give birth in Pyongyang.

This week’s CanKor RESOURCES features reviews of the following four books:

UNDER THE LOVING CARE OF THE FATHERLY LEADER by journalist Bradley Martin

FROM STALIN TO KIM IL SUNG: The Formation of North Korea, 1945-1960
and CRISIS IN NORTH KOREA: The Failure of De-Stalinization, 1956 – both 
by Australian National University lecturer Andrei Lankov

GREAT LEADER, DEAR LEADER: Demystifying North Korea Under the Kim Clan 
by journalist Bertil Lintner.

The reviews are reproduced with kind permission from Korean Quarterly, a 
non-profit/volunteer publication created by and for the Korean American 
community.
*************************************************

Contents:
1. DPRK RULING PARTY MARKS 60TH YEAR
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/10/10/AR2005101000315_pf.html
2. DPRK CONFIRMS RENUNCIATION OF NUKE PROGRAM
http://www.voanews.com/english/2005-10-12-voa29.cfm
3. KOREAS TO DISCUSS AGENDA FOR TALKS
http://times.hankooki.com/lpage/nation/200510/kt2005101319312111980.htm
4. ECONOMIC COOPERATION TOPS AGENDA OF WU YI'S DPRK TOUR
http://english.people.com.cn/200510/12/eng20051012_213998.html
5. RO KOREAN GIRL BORN IN DPR KOREA
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/story.cfm?c_id=2&ObjectID=10350012

RESOURCES: Book Reviews
6. UNDER THE LOVING CARE OF THE FATHERLY LEADER
Review bv John Feffer, Copyright Korean Quarterly
7. FROM STALIN TO KIM IL SUNG and CRISIS IN NORTH KOREA
Review by R. Mark Frey, Copyright Korean Quarterly
8. GREAT LEADER, DEAR LEADER
Reviewed by Bill Drucker, Copyright Korean Quarterly
*************************************************

1. DPRK RULING PARTY MARKS 60TH YEAR
The Associated Press, 10 October 2005

North Korean leader Kim Jong Il reviewed a massive military parade 
Monday in Pyongyang as the communist state marked the 60th anniversary 
of its ruling party with vows to "mercilessly crush" US imperialists if 
they attack.

After thousands of goose-stepping soldiers, some with bayonet-tipped 
rifles, entered the capital's main plaza in neat columns, Kim appeared 
at the podium - sparking deafening applause from the troops and audience 
members while hundreds of balloons were released, North Korean TV 
showed. Soldiers repeatedly shouted "Long live!" and Kim responded by 
clapping his hands and waving.

"With undefeatable military strength, our People's Army will firmly 
safeguard the party and the socialist fatherland," Vice Marshal Kim Il 
Chol told the crowd in televised comments. "If US and Japanese 
imperialists and their followers ultimately ignite the fire of war on 
this soil, we will mercilessly crush the aggressors and achieve the 
historic accomplishment of reunification of the fatherland."

Washington has repeatedly denied it has any intention to invade and said 
it recognizes the North's sovereignty.

At Kim's side were the country's No. 2 leader Kim Yong Nam and Jo Myong 
Rok, vice chairman of the powerful National Defense Commission. Foreign 
guests, including Chinese Vice Premier Wu Yi, were also seen. A senior 
Russian delegation also was attending the events. At the end of the 
ceremony, people held red and pink paper flowers over their heads to 
form giant letters spelling the names of leader Kim and his father, the 
North's founding ruler, Kim Il Sung. On Sunday, North Korea held a 
similar ceremony marking the anniversary and vowed to pursue a stronger 
military.

"We should fully embody the party's Songun (army-first) politics ... 
under any circumstances and conditions, and direct primary efforts to 
the strengthening" of the Korean People's Army, Kim Yong Nam told the 
crowd, according to the North's official Korean Central News Agency. The 
event was followed by a staging of a spectacle including 100,000 
performers in synchronized gymnastics.

In none of the celebrations, however, did the communist state make a 
mention of its long-running nuclear standoff with the outside world. 
Last month, the North pledged in a breakthrough accord to abandon its 
nuclear programs in exchange for aid and security assurances. The 
prospect of the agreement's implementation, however, was thrown into 
doubt after Pyongyang demanded a nuclear reactor for power before it 
disarms.

The anniversary of the North's Workers' Party is one of the largest 
holidays in the North, along with the birthdays of Kim Jong Il and his 
father. The Workers' Party was founded in 1945 by the late Kim shortly 
after the Korean Peninsula was divided after its liberation from Japan's 
1910-45 colonial rule. Kim Jong Il took over the party's highest post, 
general secretary, in 1997 following a three-year mourning period after 
his father's 1994 death. The elder Kim remains the country's "eternal 
president."
*************************************************

2. DPRK CONFIRMS RENUNCIATION OF NUKE PROGRAM
by VOA News, 12 October 2005

A Russia envoy says North Korean leader Kim Jong-il has confirmed 
Pyongyang will not develop nuclear weapons and continues to support the 
six-party agreement reached last month. Russia's Interfax news agency 
says presidential envoy Konstantin Pulikovsky just returned from North 
Korea's 60th anniversary celebrations for the founding of the country's 
communist party.
The agency quotes Mr. Pulikovsky as saying he met with the North Korean 
leader, and he clearly confirmed his country's renunciation of nuclear 
weapons. The Russian envoy also reported the 63-year-old leader is in 
excellent health, saying "he is lively and joyful."
North Korea agreed last month during six-nation talks in Beijing to 
abandon its nuclear weapons program in return for economic aid, energy 
assistance and security assurances. Next round of talks is scheduled for 
November.
*************************************************

3. KOREAS TO DISCUSS AGENDA FOR TALKS
by Seo Dong-shin, Korea Times, 13 October 2005

South and North Korea have agreed for the first time to discuss the 
agenda for the upcoming inter-Korean economic cooperation talks ahead of 
the opening of the talks, a senior Unification Ministry official said 
Thursday.

Underlining the importance of the unprecedented move for fruitful 
results of the talks, Vice Unification Minister Rhee Bong-jo said the 
South and North Korean delegates will meet in Kaesong next week for 
preparatory talks aimed at setting the agenda.

The 11th round of inter-Korean talks on economic cooperation is 
scheduled to open on Oct. 25.
“We have proposed several times that the agenda be first set ahead of 
the talks, as it would allow negotiation to be more effective and 
productive,” Rhee told a press briefing. “Last week, the North’s chief 
delegate for the economic talks sent a message of agreement.”

To date, the two sides have exchanged possible agendas for the 
inter-Korean talks on the first day of the usually three-day talks in a 
keynote speech. As a result, it has been difficult to tackle diverse 
areas of interest during the scheduled talks, Rhee said.

The vice minister also said the government formed a task force to draw 
up a road map for comprehensive economic cooperation with North Korea, 
following President Roh Moo-hyun’s order last month.

On Sept. 20, one day after the six-nation talks in Beijing on the 
North’s nuclear programs concluded with a joint statement, Roh said the 
South Korean government should build up a comprehensive plan to support 
the North’s economic recovery. The fields of focus for the task force 
include energy, transportation and communications infrastructure, Rhee said.

Headed by the vice minister, the task force is comprised of 
director-level officials from 14 relevant government agencies, including 
the Ministry of Finance and Economy. The first meeting was held later in 
the day. Meanwhile, inter-Korean exchanges have significantly increased 
this year in both volume and quality, Rhee said.

During the first nine months of the year, inter-Korean trade has reached 
$788.5 million, a 60.1 percent rise from the same period last year, 
according to the ministry. Until now, the largest amount of inter-Korean 
volume recorded was $724 million in 2003. The data includes the amount 
of inter-Korean business projects and the South’s food and fertilizer 
aid to the North. Rhee said that inter-Korean trade is expected to reach 
a record high of $1 billion this year if the current momentum is 
maintained.

In addition, the number of South Korean tourists to Mt. Kumgang, a 
scenic resort in the North, also rose above one million in June this 
year. The number of South Koreans who visited the North for other 
purposes stood at 140,427. In September alone, a total of 58,957 South 
Koreans crossed the inter-Korean border.

“Looking at those figures, this year seems to be a meaningful turning 
point in inter-Korean relations,” said Rhee.
*************************************************

4. ECONOMIC COOPERATION TOPS AGENDA OF WU YI'S DPRK TOUR
Xinhua, 12 October 2005

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Kong Quan said in Beijing Tuesday 
that during Chinese Vice Premier Wu Yi's visit to the Democratic 
People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), her discussion with the DPRK side 
focused on further enhancing bilateral economic cooperation and trade.
China and DPRK should work together to realize the consensus reached by 
the leaders of the two countries on strengthening bilateral economic and 
trade relations under the current new situation, he told a regular press 
conference.

Kong also noted the two countries should explore new ways for 
cooperation under the principles of mutual benefit and common progress.
Kong described Wu's visit as "successful and satisfactory", saying that 
the two sides had an in-depth exchange of views on furthering bilateral 
relations. The relevant issues on six-party talks had also been touched 
upon during the visit, he said.
Chinese Vice Premier Wu Yi paid an official and goodwill visit to the 
DPRK from October 8 to 11 at the invitation of the DPRK government. 
During her visit, Wu met with the leaders of the DPRK, and attended 
celebrations marking the 60th anniversary of the founding of the 
Worker's Party of Korea.
*************************************************

5. RO KOREAN GIRL BORN IN DPR KOREA
New Zealand Herald, 13 October 2005

A South Korean visiting North Korea to see a festival has become the 
first woman from her country to give birth in the communist state, 
raising questions about the baby's citizenship. Hwang Seon gave birth to 
a baby girl in Pyongyang.

"Strictly speaking, even though the baby was born in North Korea, we 
consider her to be a South Korean citizen," a South Korean Unification 
Ministry official said.
*************************************************

RESOURCES: Book Reviews

*************************************************

6. UNDER THE LOVING CARE OF THE FATHERLY LEADER
by Bradley Martin, review by John Feffer, Korean Quarterly vol.8, no.4, 
Summer 2005

It is often said that North Korea is the most puzzling county in the 
world. It is a difficult place to visit. The few journalists who make it 
there do not have the freedom to interview anyone they want. Its 
archives are not open to scholars. This does not mean, however, that no 
information is available on North Korea. It just requires a little bit 
more digging and interpreting. For the last three decades, veteran 
journalist Bradley Martin has been compiling his notes drawn from four 
trips to North Korea, patient scrutiny of official publications, and 
interviews with numerous defectors. His book Under the Loving Care of 
the Fatherly Leader, an immense and detailed examination of North Korean 
history and politics, integrates much of the recent scholarship on the 
country and adds some new pieces to the puzzle.

At over 800 pages, Martin's tome is not for the casual reader. One must 
have more than a passing curiosity about North Korea's two leaders - 
founding father Il Sung Kim and his son Jong Il Kim - in order to stay 
with the text. For those w ho hang in there, however, the book has 
numerous rewards. Martin adds considerably to the portrait of Il Sung 
Kim provided by political scientist Dae-Sook Suh in the last significant 
work on the North Korean leader. With the help of defectors' testimony, 
Martin provides a wealth of information about Jong Il Kim and his 
prospective successors, such as sons Jong Nam Kim, Jong-chol Kim, and 
Jong-un Kim.

The value of Martin's book does not lie in any particularly novel 
argument about the genesis or character of the North Korean regime. As 
the book explains, 11 Sung Kim's worldview and policies trace back to 
his days as a guerrilla fighter, and to the loyalties forged among his 
small group of combatants as they fought in China and then fled to exile 
in the Soviet Union. The author's depiction of the Korean War and the 
subsequent economic revival of the North follow fairly conventional 
lines. Rather, the book's importance lies more in its accumulation of 
intriguing details, some new, and some that serve to confirm earlier 
rumours. The picture of North Korean society that emerges from the 
narrative is far more thorough and detailed than the usual monochromatic 
depiction of a monolithic state. Martin reads between the lines of Il 
Sung's official biography - which runs to multi-volumes – to trace the 
switchbacks in North Korean policy: Against capitalism and then 
pro-market, against the West and then pro-engagement. He supplements 
this close reading of the North Korean texts with information from his 
four reporting trips to North Korea. On his first trips, he found some 
things to admire about the country. Subsequent trips left him 
considerably less enthusiastic.

Martin's extensive interviews with defectors provide the most 
interesting - and controversial - glimpses into the lives of various 
North Koreans. His interviews with former high officials reveal 
considerable divisions within the North Korean elite. Several defectors, 
for instance, suggest that Jong II's rise to power was more calculated 
than hitherto assumed. To win out over his uncle Yong-ju Kim, Jong II 
Kim deliberately elevated his father to near-deity status, in order to 
improve his own chances of dynastic succession. Another high-ranking 
defector reveals that North Korea's gift of food to the South after the 
extensive flooding of 1984 was a miscalculation. North Korean officials 
assumed that the South would reject the offer. When Seoul agreed, 
however, the North had to follow through, with the result that the 
official who'd come up with the idea was sent to the Countryside to dig 
latrines for six months. Interviews with former prison camp guards and 
inmates offer more details about the harrowing experience of those who 
fall afoul of the regime or those who are related in some way to 
dissidents, real or imagined. The days are long past when the testimony 
of defectors could be dismissed as South Korean government propaganda.

While some stories remain the stuff of rumour - and Martin unwisely 
includes the most unlikely of stories such as the rendering of the 
bodies of victims into soap for the leadership -there is simply too much 
overlap in the descriptions of executions, starvations, arbitrary 
punishment and so forth to describe the human rights situation within 
North Korea as anything but hellish.
Some of the most interesting defector information about North Korean 
society, however, has nothing to do with the lives of the VIPs or the 
transgressions of the regime. There is much in Martin's book about the 
lives of ordinary North Koreans as they meet partners of the opposite 
sex, try to advance careers, struggle with a food crisis that gathered 
momentum in the 1980s and revere II Sung Kim (even after defecting from 
the country) while disdaining Jong Il Kim. Some of his information is 
startling.

Defectors describe the juvenile gangs they joined and the brutal fights 
they conducted (which puts the recent near-riot in Pyongyang over North 
Korea's loss in the World Cup qualifier against Iran into perspective). 
Some of the information debunks received wisdom. Rather than being 
conscripted for "forced labour" in Russia, North Koreans eagerly sought 
the assignment in Siberian logging camps in order to earn additional money.

While most of this information fascinates, there is, frankly, just a 
little too much of it. Indeed, some of the book reads like barely 
assembled raw material, such as long transcripts of interviews with 
defectors and extended conversations with government officials. The 
specialist on North Korea will perhaps welcome all this information, as 
well as the extremely thorough and useful footnotes. But Martin - or his 
editor -might have exercised some restraint in order to ensure that not 
just experts reach the end of the volume. Some readers also might find 
his occasionally irreverent tone off-putting. But Martin is a 
wisecracking journalist not a Koreanist, and journalists love to take 
aim at sacred cows.

Several policy recommendations emerge near the end of the book. Through 
the accumulated facts, a few conclusions stand out. North Korea doesn't 
appear to be near collapse, Martin argues, and it would be naive to 
assume that North Koreans would welcome an American intervention. Martin 
believes that diplomacy can still resolve the differences between the 
United States and North Korea, perhaps facilitated by a high-level envoy 
such as George Bush Sr.
After 800-plus pages of analysis, Martin concludes that Jong II Kim 
could compromise if the United States, Japan, and South Korea also 
compromise, and these countries "showed respect rather than hostile 
contempt." It can only be hoped that American policymakers - a group not 
noted for their literary patience - will make it through the long 
bild-up in order to get to this very important punch line.
*************************************************

7. FROM STALIN TO KIM IL SUNG: The Formation of North Korea, 1945-1960 
and CRISIS IN NORTH KOREA: The Failure of De-Stalinization, 1956
by Andrei Lankov, Review by R. Mark Frey, Korean Quarterly vol.8, no.4, 
Summer 2005

There is such a paucity of information about the workings of the North 
Korean political system that virtually anything is welcome to those 
seeking to understand how North Korea got to be where it is today. 
Especially valuable are well-reasoned accounts that dispense with right 
wing ideological spin and are a sincere attempt to find out what is 
going on there.
In recent years, readers have finally begun to encounter publications 
which try to provide context and, hopefully, guidance for a more 
balanced and less bellicose US policy in dealings between the US and 
North Korea.

Andrei Lankov is a lecturer in the Faculty of Asian Studies, Australian 
National University, Canberra, Australia and, following years of 
research, is now providing a wealth of information about the origins of 
North Korea as a communist state, and its later evolution from Soviet 
puppet status to an independent totalitarian state which amazes even its 
detractors by its continued ability to survive despite innumerable 
obstacles. In FROM STALIN TO KIM IL SUNG, Lankov observes:
“Yet, the same regime has demonstrated an uncanny ability to survive the 
most dangerous challenges virtually intact. By the late 1990s North 
Korea is the only surviving example of an avowed Leninist (or rather 
Leninist-Stalinist) state. To almost everybody's surprise the seemingly 
fragile, awkward and it-rational Pyongyang political and social system 
has outlived similar regimes which in the 1970s or even mid-1980s looked 
far more efficient and more successful.”

How did North Korea come to present a serious threat to world stability 
with its nuclear capability? As Lankov so adroitly notes: "Still, North 
Korea is a rather unusual place, and it is difficult (indeed, 
impossible) to understand its present without knowledge of its past."
Lankov’s two books offer some sorely needed historical perspective. In 
FROM STALIN TO KIM IL SUNG: THE FORMATION OF NORTH KOREA, 1945-1960 he 
describes the origins and development of North Korea with the help of 
resources formerly unavailable to researchers, namely, materials from 
the recently-opened Russian archives which became available following 
the collapse of the Soviet Union. While admitting that the materials 
reflect an overtly Soviet perspective, he nonetheless argues for their 
utility due to their insights into the Soviet influence on North Korean 
development.

According to Lankov, the Soviet forces were critical for the defeat of 
Japanese forces in 1945 which, in turn, led to a continued Soviet 
presence and influence. At the same time, a Cold War dynamic was playing 
out with a US presence in South Korea and Japan during the 1940s and 
into the 1950s.

Unlike other Soviet-dependent states in, for example, Eastern Europe, 
North Korea had to be dealt with differently because there was no 
effective communist system in place.
Hence, "The Soviet authorities had to create a foundation for the sort 
of regime they wanted to see there ...Very important roles in the 
formation of the North Korean state and its early development were 
played by numerous Soviet Koreans - Soviet citizens of Korean 
extraction. They were sent to North Korea by the Soviet authorities and 
occupied various leading positions during the period of1945-1960."

The Soviets attempted to impose their version of communism (Stalinism) 
on North Korea at the time by using its Soviet Korean faction. By the 
mid-1950s, however, with the rise of Kruschev and his efforts to modify 
Stalinism in the Soviet Union and elsewhere, there were some interesting 
developments in North Korea. The moderate tendencies were rejected and 
II Sung Kim relied upon Korean identification with independence and 
nationalism to oppose the Soviet presence and influence. It appears that 
Il Sung Kim used the Soviet presence to systematically eliminate his 
opposition, consolidate his power, and more effectively take control of 
the country - in essence, fashioning his own North Korean version of 
Stalinist state socialism (what is referred to as juche or juche 
socialism), one in which there was a significant degree of independence 
from Soviet (and even Chinese) control.

In his book, CRISIS IN NORTH KOREA: THE FAILURE OF DE-STALINIZATION, 
1956, Lankov observes:
“The crisis of 1956 basically was a conflict of two trends; the more 
indigenous, more independent, more nationalist, but also more 
repressive, reckless, and eventually harsh political line personified by 
Kim Il Sung versus the more open-minded, more liberal, but also 
pro-foreign political line personified by the opposition leaders. Kim Il 
Sung - or rather, his camp - was on the (ostensibly pre-emptive) 
offensive in late 195-5, manoeuvring in early 1956, repelling sudden and 
forceful assaults in August and September and eventually winning the 
struggle from late 1956 onward.”

The effect of this consolidation of power was the eventual glorification 
of Il Sung Kim and his family; essentially an all-powerful personality 
cult, which, in turn, was obsessed with protecting North Korea from 
outside encroachment. (See also Bradley Martin’s Under the Loving Care 
of the Fatherly Leader: North Korea and the Kim Dynasty for an even more 
pronounced examination of this theme.)

Lankov’s two books make a solid contribution to greater understanding of 
the development of a brand of state socialism within the North Korean 
Stalinist state. This type of work will hopefully help inform our policy 
makers in their dealings with a country which does indeed have nuclear 
capability and must not be dismissed.
*************************************************

8. GREAT LEADER, DEAR LEADER: Demystifying North Korea Under the Kim Clan
by Bertil Lintner, review by Bill Drucker, Korean Quarterly vol.8, no.4, 
Summer 2005

After September 11, 2001, there was a policy shift to the right in this 
country. The Bush administration announced hard-line tactics toward 
terrorism, and the countries that support terrorism. In his famous 2002 
State of the Union speech, Bush labelled by name three countries as the 
"Axis of Evil" - Iraq, Iran, and North Korea.

In 2001, many US political pundits and sources from North Korea 
suggested that the US would consider military action against North 
Korea. As the situation played out, the aggression was ultimately turned 
to Iraq. But North Korea is never out of mind for America. As recent as 
2005, the North Korean leadership declared that it possessed nuclear 
weapons. This statement rippled across the Pacific.

A true analysis of a country's leader is a great source of insight about 
that country. North Korea has had only two leaders in its modern 
history, Kim II Sung and Kim Jong Il, father and son. Analyses of these 
two, of varying quality, with a lot of plain guesswork, have been plentiful.

Great Leader, Dear Leader is the latest book to make such an analysis. 
Bertil Lintner is a seasoned Far Eastern journalist. He was one of a few 
western correspondents to visit North Korea in 2004. In this book, he 
interviews Koreans on both sides, Koreans in Japan, and other Korean 
experts in an attempt to demystify this least-known and most-demonized 
"Axis of Evil" country.
Granted, North Korea has not extended any friendly or negotiating hand 
to the US, or even to its closest neighbours. North Korea's rhetoric has 
been by turns evasive, seemingly irrational, fiercely militaristic, and 
openly hostile. North Korean is the only modern nation that can defy 
international pressures and shut itself off from the world. Lintner 
marks off the critical time period from June 2000, when South Korean 
President Dae Jung Kim entered Pyongyang with his Sunshine Policy and 
huge sums of money, to the present time of North Korea's nuclear weapons 
admission. He contrasts the hopeful note struck with the 2000 Korean 
Summit for detente and peaceful reconciliation with the recent 
deterioration of agreements to tensions between the two Koreas, and with 
North Korea's tense relations with China, Japan, and the US

In the recent past, North Korea has made attempts to attract foreign 
investors. It received few takers because of the government's poor track 
record of repayment, and due to its lack of any actual success with 
foreign investments. To raise cash, missiles and missile technology have 
been sold to countries such as Iran, Iraq, and Pakistan. North Korean 
diplomats around the world have set up illegal operations. However, 
ordinary commercial products such as seafood, clothes, and medicines are 
also exported. To maintain a sense of power, North Korea has continued 
in its nuclear weapons program.

Lintner sees the internal failings of North Korea which have been caused 
by its two leaders imposing juche, North Korea's unique ideology based 
on self-reliance. The three principles of juche are chaju- political 
independence from other countries, charip - economic self-sufficiency, 
and chawi - self-defence. Juche worked when an industrial infrastructure 
existed, such as during the 1970s and 1980s.

This infrastructure collapsed in the 1990s and has not been replaced. 
Most of the few industries that were upgraded were confined to those 
supporting missile production and nuclear programs.
The juche ideology was so fused with Confucian ideals of respect for 
authority, starting with the regime of II Sung Kim, extending into the 
regime of the son, Jong II Kim, that even in the harshest of famines, 
when death tolls climbed into the hundreds of thousands, the people did 
not rise up. The elder Kim was clever in his gradual construction of a 
myth about himself to the people. He also consolidated power until his 
was the first and last word in the North Korean politburo.

Under his son and heir, the Central Committee echelon and the 
highranking military have been controlled by bribes, promotions and jobs 
for their families, better housing and food, and constant monitoring. 
Under the younger Kim, individuals and institutions that are farther 
away from the central power and Pyongyang receive less state subsidies 
of food or health care. Therefore, the poorest people in the remotest 
provinces were the first to starve.
Along with the ideals of juche and Confucianism, the North Korean people 
are indoctrinated from birth to the supreme virtues of the two leaders. 
All citizens serve a mandatory military tour of duty. The media, news, 
and education are state regulated. The secret police quietly eliminate 
critics and dissidents. The state has so effectively controlled the 
lives of all North Koreans, that if there is opportunity for the people, 
they choose escape over insurrection.
Outside North Korea, illegal activities behind the North Korean 
diplomatic missions help raise cash, get deals for arms sales, and serve 
as satellites for intelligence gathering. The Chongryun or the 
association of North Koreans in Japan acts as an overseas post with 
Koreans loyal to Pyongyang. This group has provided money and technology 
directly to North Korea. Despite crackdowns and internal defections, the 
Chongryun are still around and provide a vital link for the North Korea.

One other important factor that Lintner (and Erik Cornell before him) 
points out is that North Korea's neighbouring countries need the country 
to be sustained more than they need it to fall. The burden of 
subsidizing millions of North Koreans would ruin the economies of South 
Korea, China, Japan, and even the US The expedient way to help North 
Korea is to provide aid to help North Korea rebuild an economic 
infrastructure. Lintner concludes that maintaining status quo on the 
Korean peninsula is not an option. Tensions between the two Koreas and 
the US remain high. The foreign residents in Pyongyang see the next 
reform coming with the nuclear confrontation between US and North Korea.

Great Leader, Dear Leader is a well analyzed and thoughtfully-written 
book. The author Lintner shares common ground in his ideas about North 
Korea with other western writers, such as Bruce Cumings (US) and Erik 
Cornell (Sweden). Like these contemporaries, Lintner sees the inevitable 
reforms coming, by gradual evolution, external aggression, or by 
internal power struggle. The book includes a historical chronology of 
North Korean events, and a who's who of the North Korean Central 
Committee. Lintner has the right idea here, in that understanding the 
leaders and their motives is the key to securing stability in the 
volatile Northeast Asia region and in the world, today and tomorrow.
*************************************************

End CanKor # 223

*************************************************
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